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By Ana Luisa Terrazas Molly is the kind of dog you love to hear about. And Susan Cordell, Molly's owner, is first in line when it comes to describing this indomitable spirit. Cordell, a technical expert with the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences who received her master's degree in Soil and Water Science from the UA in 1994, has what is called an "invisible" disability -- one that's not visually apparent but may require the help of a service dog. She had slowly been losing her hearing in one ear for years but suffered a major setback two years ago when she suddenly lost hearing almost completely in the other ear. A hearing aid wasn't enough, so she contacted Handi-Dogs, a national service animal training program based in Tucson. "I began looking in the animal shelters for a dog that seemed to 'click' with me," Cordell says. "I found Molly after about three months. I have to admit she looked pretty bedraggled -- very skinny and very dirty. She was about one year old and had just had puppies. "One of the attendants gave me a look like 'You don't want this dog!' and commented that she was rather hyperactive. But Molly had that 'something' for me. "She was on her last day before her window of adoption was to close, so I guess you could say I saved her, and now she is saving me," Cordell says. And how. Cordell trained Molly -- her eclectic breed remains a bit of a mystery! -- with the help of Handi-Dogs. Molly proved to be a quick study. In fact, when Cordell was in Reno at a conference, Molly alerted her to a fire alarm that she could not hear and led her outside the hotel. In addition to fire alarms, Molly alerts Cordell to telephones, knocks on the door, and alarm clocks. "The problem with an invisible disability is that people do not believe you have a need for a service dog. I have been asked -- and sometimes not too pleasantly -- to leave hotels, restaurants, stores, training centers, and airports, even when I was trying to catch a flight," Cordell recalls. Although the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was passed in 1990, most people still do not understand the full extent of that law. One complication is that many times neither the human nor canine partners fit the typical appearance most people picture for a disabled person. Cordell, a member of the College of Agriculture's Diversity Committee, which works to celebrate and promote the benefits diversity can bring to a college, happened to mention her experiences during a meeting. That's when the group decided there must be a way to inform people about service dogs and their owners' rights. As a result, Cordell and Molly became two of the stars in a seven-and-a-half minute video called Partners for Life: A Service Dog's Tale. Told from the dog's point of view, the video provides information about the rights of people with disabilities and their service dog partners in public places. (You can find out more at http://cals.arizona.edu/agdiv/servicedog.) The video is a UA-alumni-and-friends production through and through. Cyndee Wing, who received both her bachelor's and master's degrees from the UA, wrote, shot, directed, and edited the video. A bookstore scene was shot in the UA Bookstore. Reta Yanik, the clerk in the scene, is doing her master's work on service dogs, and the man who plays the bookstore manager is Tom Cordell (Susan Cordell's husband), who also works for the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences. As a matter of fact, Susan Cordell's association with the UA goes back quite a ways. Her father taught agronomy here in the 1950s, her oldest brother received his Ph.D. in astronomy, and her daughter is enrolled as a freshman this coming fall. We're not sure yet whether Molly has decided to enroll, but this much is certain: Molly and Susan Cordell have all the education they need when it comes to spreading the word about people with disabilities and their loyal partners. From Arizona Alumnus, Spring 2000, Volume 77/3 |
Bedraggled Pooch Returns Good Deed